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> Mars: Spirit self portrait

Mars: Spirit self portrait

author: Nasa/JPL/Cornell/Novapix

reference: a-mar08-00226

Image Size 300 DPI: 98 * 98 cm

The self-portrait of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows the solar panels still gleaming in the Martian sunlight and carrying only a thin veneer of dust two years after the rover landed and began exploring the red planet. Spirit's panoramic camera took this mosaic of images on the 586th sol, or Martian day, of exploration (Aug. 27, 2005). The vertical projection used here produces the best view of the rover deck itself, though it distorts the ground and antennas somewhat.

Keywords for this photo:

2005 - ASTRONOMY - DUST - GUSEV - MARS - MARS EXPLORATION ROVER - MARTIAN SURFACE - PLANET - POSTER - ROVER - SOIL - SOLAR PANEL - SPIRIT -